Action for grand pianos.



E. S. WBRGLIN.

ACTION FOR GRAND PIANOS.

APPLICATION FILED ooT. a, 1913.

Patented May 26, 1914.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EDWIN S. WEROLIN, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO SOI-IMER c COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A FIRM.

ACTION FOR GRAND PIANOS.

Application filed October 8, 1913.

Specification of Letters Patent.

10 all w/wm t may concern Be it known that I, EDWIN S. lVEnoLIN, a citizen of the United States, residing at- Brooklyn, county of Kings, and State of New York, have invented a new and Improved Action for Grand Pianos, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to an action for grand pianos which embodies various novel features of construction, suoli as providing a back check near the front or pivotal end of the hammer shank, shortening the keys, permitting the keys to be readily removed, and providing ain-'ple space back of the shortened keys for the reception of a pneumatic or other player action.

Though the invention is particularly applicable to player pianos, it may also be applied to manually operated instruments.

In the accompanying drawing: Figure 1 is a side view partly in section of a piano-- action embodying my invention, showing the normal position of the parts; Fig. 2 a similar view with the key depressed, and Fig. 3 a detail of part of the support and adjoining parts.

The capstan 10 of the key 11, engages the support 12, which is fulcrumed at 13 to a rail 14. The jack 15 which is pivoted to the support at 16, and is engaged by a spring 17, engages the hammer butt 18, the hammer shank 19 being pivoted at 20 to rail 21. At 22 there is pivoted to a flange 23 of support 12 a repetition lever 24, the forward end of which is provided with an upwardly extending nose 25, that engages hammer butt 18, directly back of jack 15. The repetition lever 24, is engaged by a spring 26, that passes through a slot 27 of arm 23, and may be regulated by a. screw 28, as indicated in Fig. 3. From the forward end of lever 24, there extends a spoon 29 adapted to be engaged by a button 30.

Jack 15 is provided with a rearwardly extending arm 31, that diverges from the jack from the bottom toward the top, and is accommodated within a slot of the repeating lever 24, through which it passes. The upper or free end of arm 31, carries a button 32, adapted to engage a projection 33, depending from the hammer shank 19 back of the hammer butt knuckle, and shown to be made integral with the hammer buttv proper, said arm constituting in effect the back check of the action.

It will thus be seen that by my invention,

a back check of peculiar construction is provided near the front or pivotal end of the hammer shank in contradistinction to the back checks heretofore generally employed, and which were arranged near the back or free end of1 the hammer shank. This vital difference in construction is accompanied by other important features of novelty. Thus the key is shortened to a marked extent, any substantial extension back of the capstan heretofore required for carrying the back check being no longer necessary; so also the action rail heretofore arranged directly above the rear end of the key as well as the back check carried by such rear end are dispensed with so that a large space is cleared back of the key and below the support for the accommodation of the pneumatics, which well adapts the action for player pianos. Finally the key may be readily removed by being unimpededly withdrawn from underneath the support and may be replaced without in any way disturbing the action proper, any such removal being heretofore prevented by the back check striking the action rail. It will thus be seen that the action is simple and light, that it may be readily dismembered, and that it is so grouped as to readily accommodate the pneumatics. To further this last named object, the damper actuating means are also constructed in a novel manner. As shown, the support 12 is extended rearwardly beyond the key and here carries a button 34, which engages a spoon 35 extending forwardly from the forward arm of a damper lever 36. This lever is pivoted to a rail 37 at 38, and engages with its rear arm the damper lifter 39, which is normally depressed by the spring 40 of the damper 41. Thus when the key isstruck, the damper lever 36 will be swung up at its rear end to take the damper off the string, while upon the release of the key, the damper is raised and the lifter is lowered.

The loud pedal (not shown) acts upon the dampers through lifter l2 and rod 43. As the damper lever is placed Well up, ample room is provided under its front arm for accommodating the rear portion of the pneumatic action, the front portion of which may be accommodated beneath the rear end of the Support as already described.

Claims:

l. In a repeating piano action, a support having a flange, a repeating lever pivoted thereto, a jack having an arm, a hammer having a butt adapted to be engaged by the jack and by the repeating lever, and a projection depending from the hammer at the butt and adapted to be operatively engaged by the jack arm.

2. In a repeating piano action, a support, having a flange, a slotted repeating lever pivoted thereto, a jack having an arm passing through the slotted repeating lever, a hammer having a butt adapted to be engaged by the jack and by the repeating lever, and a projection depending from the hammer at the back of the hammerbutt and adapted to be operatively engaged by the jack arm.

3. A repeating piano action provided With a key, a capstan mounted on the end thereof, a support engaged by the capstan, a jack pivoted to the support, a hammer having a butt adapted to be engaged by the jack, and a back check arranged in proximity to the pivoted end of the hammer and above the support.

EDWIN S. WEROLIN.

Witnesses z FRANK v. BRIESEN, ARTHUR E. ZUMPE.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ive cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Yatents, Washington, D. C. 

